power steering questions

GreenMachine · Post by **GreenMachine** » August 30th, 2006, 4:52 pm

Ok I am almost complete with the ze swap and no power steering is a decision made a while ago. But I was an idiot and welded the bolts shut thinking the rack would work like that. well now that I know my car can only turn about 4 degrees in any direction, I need to put the power steering resivor in. thats the back story now the question, does any one know the thread size of the bolts going into the power steering rack? IN the manual page N-20 it is the bolts labeled A & B. went to the plumbing section of the hardware store and tried the closest looking to the bolt I had and none of the NPThreads would line up. anyone able to help me here?!? thanks!

-Chris

wagZE · Post by **wagZE** » September 1st, 2006, 3:39 am

FYI I put my ps pump on my ze and just never filled it with fluid. the belt turns fine & i dont get power steering personally i like to "feel the road" better when i'm driving like the maniac i am. But to answer your question no I dont know the bolt size/thread length.

GreenMachine · Post by **GreenMachine** » September 1st, 2006, 6:35 pm

Yeah i personally prefer the feel without it as well, leaving the pump on wasnt something I was interested in though so When i took it off i just bought a 30 in 4 groove belt and had napa order me an idler pulley that had the grooves so I could loose the weight of the pump as well.

Steeb · Post by **Steeb** » September 1st, 2006, 9:17 pm

after driving the same car one equipped with ps but disabled and one equipped with a manual rack, i can seriously say that the disabled ps rack is much less responsive and by far much harder to turn the steering wheel.

wagZE · Post by **wagZE** » September 1st, 2006, 11:15 pm

manual rack meaning?????

kiwi_MX3 · Post by **kiwi_MX3** » September 1st, 2006, 11:37 pm

A mannual ie NON power steering rack from any BG chassis
mazda or ford fits straight in , more turns lock to lock than the
power steering rack, but imo if you remove the power steering
system this is need!

PATDIESEL · Post by **PATDIESEL** » September 2nd, 2006, 10:22 pm

I agree with Kiwi. The swap is a pain in the butt cause the rack is so hard to get to, but it will be the only real way to drive, feel the road and not need steriods. Also, the correct way to make a power rack a manual one is to loop the outlet hose to the inlet hose with a custom bent metal or flexable rubber line. Leave fluid in the rackas it is needed to lubricate certain parts and seals. Also, the loop is needed so that the fluid can flow from one side to the other. That is why yours will not turn, the fluid cannot go anywhere.

Steeb · Post by **Steeb** » September 4th, 2006, 1:35 am

yes kiwi has it summarized exactly the way i would put it.

btw, i fabricated a line to connect 1 and 2 that way it could still hold fluid to keep the rack lubricated. then i sealed the holes in 3 with some bolts to keep dust out.

while it is very much still drivable, it does reduce the steering feel of the car substantially and like 10 million times harder to drive and 50 million times harder to park than the manual rack that requires more turns. not worth disableing the ps rack imo. it is only fun for the first week or so because your revs are much faster.

swapping out the steering rack is fairly easy, it can be removed from either passenger or drivers side wheel well.

GreenMachine · Post by **GreenMachine** » September 6th, 2006, 2:02 am

So if you were to use a rubber hose to loop the system on the number 3 bolts on steeb's photo, how would you go about getting fluid into the hose? would air in the system prevent it from lubricating/functioning properly for extended periods of time?

Steeb · Post by **Steeb** » September 6th, 2006, 11:38 pm

if u connect 1 and 2 the fluid will back flow into each other. i filled the fittings in 3 with solder to keep dust and air out.

PATDIESEL · Post by **PATDIESEL** » September 6th, 2006, 11:52 pm

You could connect one end of the hose then fill it standing up then connect the other end. That would seem to be the best way to get it full. It will hurt the seals over time, but I bet we are talking a good long time.
From what I've read I wouldn't do it though. Get a manual rack if you really want the extra power.

wagZE · Post by **wagZE** » September 7th, 2006, 4:26 am

ahhhh... very nice. so like a ford escort manual rack? Ya know those are great ideas, I have been runnnin with no fluid in my power steering for over a year. My girlfriend loves the muscles it has given me.

Steeb · Post by **Steeb** » September 7th, 2006, 8:05 pm

who needs rebull, no power steering gives u wings for free